Last October, Native American artist Sierra Spirit Kihega introduced her debut EP, coin toss, to the world. Originally from Tulsa, Oklahoma—home to both of her tribes, the Otoe-Missouria and Keetoowah Cherokee—the EP is deeply rooted in her personal experiences and cultural heritage within the Native community.
coin toss serves as a heartfelt tribute to the art of storytelling, with Sierra Spirit sharing unfiltered narratives about her upbringing, the loss of her grandmother, love, and struggles with mental health. Inspired by artists like Phoebe Bridgers, The Japanese House, and Ethel Cain, Sierra has crafted a distinct blend of melancholic, guitar-driven, twangy indie rock.
On February 3rd, Sierra will be making her first appearance in Minnesota by opening for acclaimed British singer-songwriter David Gray at the State Theatre. We caught up with Spirit days ahead of the tour start to discuss the ambitious first year of her music, what makes a good storyteller, and her experience with our own local legend, Dan Wilson.

Music in Minnesota: You started playing and writing music during the pandemic, with your first release in February of 2024. Can you share what it’s like being fresh and new to the scene? Have there been any surprises or shifting of expectations for you?
Sierra Spirit: I’m really fortunate to have had this timeline that I’ve had. I definitely understand that it’s not the way that it goes for everybody from starting to releasing my first music in basically a year ago. My first song ever came out about a year ago, and just watching how quickly life has changed in the best way has been really cool.
I am about to go on the road with David Gray for a month and basically see the entire country and play these historic venues. The last show of this tour is going to be playing the Ryman in Nashville, and I don’t know how many other people can say that a year into their career, they get to play a venue like that, so it’s just very surreal for sure.
MIM: coin toss is an aspiring debut release and represents your story well with growing up in Oklahoma, sharing the loss of your grandmother, mental health, and even some romance. Is there an emotional transformation with getting these discussions into the world, sharing your feelings, and witnessing its feedback?
Sierra Spirit: Definitely. I mean, songwriting is, for me, kind of just turned into free therapy. It’s like things that I had been afraid to unpack and process, but when I started making music, I was like, okay, how do I make music that means something to someone more than just me? It’s been really nice to unpack these things that felt really hard, things I hadn’t processed. If this person is trusting me with their time, how do I make this mean something, and how can I make sure that this connects on levels for other people?
“It’s what I felt when I fell in love for the first time, when I got my heart broken for the first time, the first time I lost someone and experienced grief and felt those things. It’s the same reason that kids have a meltdown in the grocery store when they can’t have a toy that they want because at that point in their life, that truly is the worst thing they’ve ever experienced. They have nothing to compare that to. There’s no consideration for how big of a meltdown they should have.”
Writing that song, “I’ll Be Waiting” about my grandmother and painting that picture of what it felt like to feel grief and loss for the first time. Or writing “Bleed You” about what it felt like when I fell in love for the first time, I realized this is what this is supposed to feel like from writing a song, and how it did just feel like the end of the world. It’s truly the worst thing you’ve ever experienced.

MIM: Being a musician is one of the few professions where vulnerability plays a huge role in connecting to an audience. How do you balance how much you share and what you keep private?
Sierra Spirit: It’s easy to feel like you’re oversharing in moments, but I think I realized that that was okay the first time I played a live show and having somebody come up to me after and tell me what a song meant to them.
I remember another Indigenous person coming up to me and sharing how it’s so crazy that you painted this picture of what it felt like to be with your grandmother and the reasons that you loved her and how you felt for her, because that put me right back in that moment with my own grandmother.
“It’s really strange to walk into a room full of strangers, and then after a 30 minute set, suddenly they know everything about you.”
It is really cool to see that other people can find themselves in that. Especially before I played any of these songs live, it was like, is this too far? Is this too much? Then being able to talk to people see how they connected with the music on their own terms and come up to their own experiences. It made me realize that that is just one of the biggest joys of songwriting, it’s kind of a free pass to overshare.

MIM: I’m drawn to how you’re bringing awareness to your Indigenous heritage, which I think is an underrepresented voice in the music community. You’ve shared how storytelling is a strong trait in your family. When did you notice this growing up and what makes a great storyteller?
Sierra Spirit: It’s just one really cool thing about being indigenous is storytelling has always been such a huge part of the culture for generations and generations. I remember going to the reservation with my grandmother to visit her siblings and just sitting at the table and listening to them.
I remember very specifically when I realized that storytelling is a gift. My grandma was sitting at the table telling us about a field that we passed on the way there. She’s like, I remember the day that me and my brothers, we skipped out of school to play in this field all day, and we just created this own little world for ourselves. They were all just laughing and giggling talking about what it felt to be a kid, and then getting home and getting in trouble.
I would hang on every word listening to my grandma tell a story. Every word meant something.
MIM: As you mentioned, you’re touring with David Gray, coming to the Twin Cities on February third. You’re playing all of these iconic venues and touring all over North America. What do you look forward to most, and what do you hope to take away from this journey?
Sierra Spirit: I think it’s going to be a really cool and beautiful and special thing to realize that in these cities I’ve never been to. I can’t wait to experience looking out and realizing all of these people have their own lives to go back to. Everyone is in this room has experienced grief and what it feels like to fall in love and what it feels like to have your heart broken.
It’s so easy in those moments to kind of get in your head, but I think I’m so excited to just experience human connection on that level and realizing that everybody in this room, every single person that’s going to be in these rooms has felt what I’ve felt. It’s such a gift to be able to play music for people and share such a special and intimate moment on a large level, that’s such a rare experience to be able to have.

MIM: You also worked with Minnesota’s own Dan Wilson. Can you share that experience?
Sierra Spirit: Dan Wilson is such a natural-born artist. It’s truly incredible. That was such a cool thing to be in a room with Dan writing together for the first time and watching him go around the room, bouncing from guitar to drums, back to the soundboard. It all felt easy to Dan as breathing or sneezing. It is such a rare and incredible experience to watch someone like him work. It’s just in his bones, just watching him feel the music and it just makes sense to him. I will cherish every second I get with Dan. He is such an incredible guy and genius.
MIM: Touring is a beast in itself with all the time, miles, and repetitive nature of it all. How are you planning to stay centered? Are you bringing along any comfort things from home to help with that?
Sierra Spirit: Music is such an anchor, it grounds me in such a way. Every night I’m realizing how I got into this room, these songs about these moments and all of these things that make me me, these are my most formative moments and memories. That’s what put me here, and I get to share that every night. It’s almost like an affirmation in the way. A special thing about songwriting is that I am just laying out everything that got me where I ammevery time I play a set. Especially on this tour I am sure it’ll keep me centered.
MIM: Well said. I mean, I think you may want to bring a really nice pillow too. Just something that maybe smells like home, I think is always helpful too.
Sierra Spirit: (laughing) I’ve always got a stash of sage from Oklahoma, so I’m definitely going to bring that on the road with me. That’s such a comforting smell. I have some of my grandma’s favorite jewelry, just all my little bits and pieces.
MIM: Well, we’re excited to have you here in the Twin Cities.
Sierra Spirit: Thanks for good questions. I had such a good time.
A few tickets are still available for Sierra’s debut performance in Minnesota on February 3rd at the State Theatre.
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